You have accessThe ASHA LeaderSIG Spotlight1 Jul 2017Special Interest Group 8, Public Health Issues Related to Hearing and Balance Vickie L. TutenAuD, CCC-A Vickie L. Tuten Google Scholar More articles by this author , AuD, CCC-A https://doi.org/10.1044/leader.SIGS.22072017.np SectionsAbout ToolsAdd to favorites ShareFacebookTwitterLinked In When did you join your SIG—and what made you want to join? I have been a member of the special interest groups that have dealt with hearing conservation and occupational audiology since the beginning of my career starting in the early 1990s, when SIGs were referred to as Special Interest Divisions. Although I have dropped membership for short periods in my 30 years as an audiologist, I have always come back. How has your involvement with the SIG helped you in your career? I rejoined SIG 8 of because my interest in hearing-loss prevention and many other audiology-related public health topics. I also enjoy networking with other audiologists who have similar interests and expertise in these areas. The last time I joined was because someone I knew on SIG 8 reached out and asked me to join! It was that easy! I think the networking and the opportunities for volunteering are always of benefit to anyone’s career, and belonging to a SIG does afford those opportunities. How do you carve out time to volunteer with the SIG while working in your full-time job and balancing other commitments? What advice would you give to someone who’d like to get more involved in the SIG, including how you get support from your supervisor/institution? There are moments that the volunteer activities may pick up in intensity, but they are generally manageable when everyone contributes. I have been fortunate that every employer and supervisor that I have had in my career sees the value in volunteering, and they see it as an extension to my job as an audiologist. That is exactly how I would present it to a supervisor. The volunteer responsibilities and time spent during work hours is minimal and has a low impact on the job we do for our employers. The networking with like-minded colleagues make the volunteer time worthwhile. What upcoming initiatives or events related to or sponsored by your SIG should everyone know about? Chats, conferences or convention events? SIG 8 is small, and we would love to see our membership grow. Right now, the coordinating committee is developing an infographic flyer toward that end. We are busy planning for the Audiology SIG Joint Affiliate Meeting at the 2017 Convention in Los Angeles. We invite all audiologists attending convention to join us at this luncheon. Look out for more information as time gets closer. SIG 8 has invited sessions at convention as well. What is your favorite recent Perspectives article, and why? Volume 13, Issue 1 was one of my favorite Perspectives issues because it focused on hearing-loss prevention best practices. Another favorite Perspectives article was “Building Blocks of Gene Expression: DNA to RNA to Protein” in Volume 15, Issue 1, as this is a newly emerging field of study that I find fascinating. So please join us as an affiliate or as a SIG volunteer. You won’t be disappointed! Author Notes Vickie L. Tuten, AuD, CCC-A, is branch chief of prevention and surveillance in the Defense Hearing Center of Excellence of the Defense Health Agency. She is associate coordinator of SIG 8. [email protected] Advertising Disclaimer | Advertise With Us Advertising Disclaimer | Advertise With Us Additional Resources FiguresSourcesRelatedDetails Volume 22Issue 7July 2017 Get Permissions Add to your Mendeley library History Published in print: Jul 1, 2017 Metrics Current downloads: 100 Topicsleader_do_tagasha-article-typesleader-topicsCopyright & Permissions© 2017 American Speech-Language-Hearing AssociationLoading ...